Scores killed, houses burnt as terrorists raid Benue communities
EMERGENCY DIGEST- Many have been reportedly killed on Sunday in different attacks on communities in Effeche and Igama in Edumoga Ehaje district of Okpokwu Local Government Area of Benue State.
Earlier on Sunday, at least 11 people were said to have been killed in an early morning attack on Igama.
The latest attack on Effeche, according to some villagers who spoke with our correspondent on telephone, was still ongoing at about 9:30pm.
Locals said the assailants besieged the Igama community at about 4am on Sunday and opened fire on the villagers.
They reportedly set almost all buildings in the vicinity on fire.
The villagers claimed that at least 11 bodies had been recovered while efforts were being made to find missing persons.
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Chairman of Okpokwu LGA, Amina Audu, however, told newsmen that she had received three corpses at Okpoga, the local government headquarters, while six corpses were being brought from Igama, one of the affected villages.
Audu explained that the invaders operated in the community between 4am and 6am, adding that they burnt down all the houses in the community.
The chairman further disclosed that the victims were all youths while the elderly and women were allowed to escape.
“I’m right now at the police station in Okpoga awaiting the corpses, soldiers and other security men are here with me,” she said.
Contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) for Benue Command, SP Catherine Anene, confirmed the incident.
“The incident is confirmed but the command is yet to receive details from officers who went to the scene,” she said in a text message.
